Late for her own party New Year’s birthday makes it extra special for newborn at Portsmouth Regional Hospital

Thursday

Jan 3, 2013 at 3:15 AM

By Andrea Bulfinchabulfinch@fosters.com

PORTSMOUTH — Eleven days late and with a name inspired by the happiness of “celebration,” newborn Felicia Andrade was the first baby of 2013 delivered at Portsmouth Regional Hospital and throughout the Seacoast and Tri-City regions.

On Wednesday, proud mother of the New Year baby, Mollie Andrade of Seabrook, shared her excitement with friends who were visiting the first-time mother as she held her daughter snug in her arms.

Born at 9:43 a.m. Tuesday, Jan 1, Felicia slept soundly during her first full day in the world bundled in her blanket and wearing a woven purple cap on her head for warmth.

Andrade said during her pregnancy she thought Felicia, whom after a day in the world was described as being “very calm and very alert” by her mother, would arrive early. Instead, her due date passed, the Christmas holiday passed and, though only hours into the first day of the year, even the start of 2013 had gone by.

She said she knew as the days went by that she wouldn’t be going into labor on her own.

Her labor was induced Dec. 31 and at 3 a.m. the following day, “that’s when the fun began,” she said.

It wasn’t until after Felicia was born and Andrade overheard her doctor exclaim “that was awesome” that she began to learn she likely had the first baby of the new year.

“I said, ‘What? I still have a chance at that?’” she laughed. The excitement of having the first newborn in the area started to sink in.

Andrade said she and her husband, of Brazilian descent, chose the name “Felicia” after being inspired by the term “felicidade,” the Brazilian word for “celebration” and one of the first she learned from her husband.

“I really wanted a name that wasn’t common,” she said.

She also said they wanted a baby all along, though they had planned on waiting a bit after getting married to conceive. Two weeks after their vows, Andrade found out she was pregnant.

“I’m excited because I wanted this for a very long time,” she said.

Her visitors, friends she and her husband have met through camping, said Felicia wasn’t just the first baby born this year, but was also “the most special.”

And while mom was excited that her “little monkey” had claimed the title of “New Year baby 2013,” she was most looking forward to bringing her 8 pound bundle of joy home.